Mission report for week of April 12

Best catch you up on this weeks happenings. We went to Hermitage, Pa. on Saturday and helped Elder and Sister Hartman move/clean apartments and take and exchange a wrecked car. We left at a little after 7 am and got back around 6:30pm. Boy were we tired. Went out to dinner and had a really good steak and then went to Handel's ice cream parlor and had homemade ice cream. Both were really good. I sure wouldn't want the Hartman's job. They are moving missionaries two to four times a week plus have to check out the missionaries cars at Zone Conference. They really have a hard and demanding mission. They also do office work. We will probably go with them again to help move.

Today after Church we went to the Lakeview cemetery in East Cleveland. It is huge!! Several famous people are buried there. James Garfield, John D. Rockefeller, Elliott Ness and others. The flowers and shrubs are starting to bloom.They have 100,000 daffodils on this one hill that is called "Daffodil Hill". They are just starting to bloom. Next week is the official Sunday of them being in bloom. I bet it is really going to be beautiful. There are so many monuments, obelisk's and tombs. Quite magnificent.

Wasn't Conference awesome? I really loved Elder Hollands talk on the Savior. He is so dynamic yet so humble. If you go to lds.org and click on the First Presidency's Easter message and then go to YouTube and Elder Hollands talk, the video and all combined is awesome. What a great thing to watch on this Sunday as we think of the Savior and his Resurrection and the gift of eternal life we have been given because of him if we do what we are supposed to do. Our thoughts are with you all. Hope your Easter was as nice as ours. We had the Haights, Hatmans, Sisters Redd, Ensign, Moore and Gibbs here for dinner. We had ham and all the trimmings. Plus a very pleasant visit. It's nice to have them here as our substitute family to share the holidays and special occasions. Next time we have them all here will be on Mother's Day and Dad's birthday.

On Saturday we get to go to Columbus to the temple with the Haights, Maneys and Elder McGuire. We always look forward to that. On Saturday night we are going to a Scout spaghetti dinner and auction. We donated a dinner for eight for the auction. Thought it would be a good way to get to know and meet some of the people in the ward.

Wednesday and Thursday of this week we will have Sister Redd's daughter and daughter-in-law staying at our apartment. They are driving out to pack her and Sister Ensign up to go back home to Utah. Then Sisters Moore and Gibbs will move down the hall from us in their apartment and then we will all be in the same complex, which is nice.

Well, I guess that is it for this week. We love all of you and miss you. We include you in our prayers each night and hope we are in yours. Love Mom and Dad

Magnolias & Conference Casserole

Well, we started the day with "Conference Casserole" and company. Thought because Conference didn't start until noon, our time, we would have the senior sisters and the Hartmans over for brunch. Also the Lemons who are Elder Hartman's cousins son, wife and 2-yr. old son,Caleb.They live in our apartment complex and just finished school at BYU and got a job here in Cleveland.They go to the Lakewood Ward. We had casserole, ham and bacon, raspberry muffins, orange rolls, juice, fresh fruit and good company.

I typed this once but forgot to save while dad was trying to send pictures.

Was so great to listen to conference and get our batteries recharged so to speak. I always enjoy President Eyring. He is so humble and you can just feel of his spirit. Looking forward to hearing from President Monson and Ucthdorf. Dad said there were really some awesome talks at the priesthood session last night. It didn't start until 8 pm our time, so was 10:30 pm before he got home last night.

Spring is bursting out all over. Crocus, daffodils and tulips are blooming everywhere. They say that there is a cemetery here that is just covered with daffodils. Guess it is quit the site to see. Trees are budding out so should be in full array in a couple of weeks. We have been watching a magnolia tree outside our window at the archives. It started out with buds like a pussy willow, then leaves and now the magnolias are just ready to open. I have always wanted to go to the South to see them, but now dad said we don't have to go because they are all over here. He doesn't want to go because it is hot there. But I still want to see the mossy trees, plantations and of course go eat at Paula Dean's restaurant. It is supposed to snow this weekend hopefully the blossoms won't freeze. I would like to get a picture of them.

We have a busy week again coming up. Tuesday I am fixing lunch for everyone at the archives, Wednesday a meeting, Thursday working at the Family History center, Friday we are going to Kirtland for a special Good Friday fireside at the Kirtland temple given by Brother Carl Anderson (an authority on church history in Kirtland and the surrounding area from CES) and the Community of Christ Church and then on Saturday morning at 7am we are going to Hermitage, PA, with the Hartmans to move some missionaries. Then Sunday everyone is coming here for Easter Dinner.

We started shift work last Monday and Dad has been doing some imaging. He said he is glad he doesn't have to do it for 8 hours straight as it gets pretty boring. He did 2365 images in the 11.5 hours he worked on them. At least, with doing document preparations and indexing there is a little variety. We now start at 9:30 am and work until 6pm. Gives us a little time in the morning to do a few things before we head in.

I guess I better send an update. We have been so busy it seems like every day and evening and weekend are full. Sometimes feels like we are on vacation instead of a mission. We have not had a social life like we have here, since we moved to Utah. Guess because none of us have any family to do things with we rely on each other for that interaction. A great bunch of people. Sisters Redd and Ensign are going home the middle of April. Will miss them they are lots of fun. Have two new sisters. Sisters Moore from Loa and Gibbs from Hawaii. Two weekends ago we went to Warthers Museum in Dover, to an Amish restuarant for lunch, to a cheese factory and to Lehmans Hardware. What beautiful countryside. I can't wait until spring and everything greens up. There are just rolling hill after rolling hill and lots of Amish buggies over every rise. We kept seeing these little outhouse looking buildings and thought maybe that's what they were but when we went to Lehmans there was a bulletin board with all sorts of models you could order and they were phone booths. They can't have a phone in their homes but they can outside and away from the house. Monday is always washday. Quite the site to see. This weekend we are going to finish up our wood projects for the archives. Our plans change often here. The Senior sisters called this morning wanting to know if we wanted to go to the Imax and the Natural History museum with them this afternoon.So wee will clean apartment do laundry, and get the wood projects stained and varnished and then meet them at noon. We went to Sokalowski's a Polish restaurant today for an early dinner after all our excursions. Had a fun day. Tomorrow after fast Sunday we wre having everyone over for Mexican food. We have the biggest table and most chairs and dishes. So they all come here.

We will start a split shift on this coming Monday. We will go in at 10:00 am instead of 7:00 and will work until 6:00 pm instead of 3:00 pm. Hope to get more imaging done so we cane get caught up some. We have 98 boxes ready to be immaged and Elder Mcguire only can get two- three done a week. There are about 3,000 images per box.So with dad imaging for three hours it may help.

We are having all the senior missionaries over for Easter Dinner. I will fix ham, cheese potatoes and fresh strawberry pies and they will all furnish the rest.

We are going to the Family History Center tonight. I have been asked to do their bulletin board and display case. So that will be fun. Thanks to Heidi sending me care packages I can have some neat things. They have a Michaels here but I have never liked them very much. We work at the FHC every Thursday. President Peterson got us special permission to get on to the NEW Family Search. So now we can proceed on adding names to our family lines. Going to take a long time as not much there. At least that we can see. Lots of things that need to be corrected, too.

We went to the Columbus temple with the senior couples serving in Daytona nd Akron. Was a great day. We got to be the witnesses. Went out to lunch and had a meeting discussing our work and projects. We get to do this every month.

The Stake President told us we are going to be asked to work with some less active families in our ward. That will hopefully be a special experience for us and them.

We love all of you and you are in our prayers daily.

A day at the temple

Trip to Kirtland for transfers

Part of the Newell K. Whitney store

Kitchen

Back room in store
Room in store
School of the Prophets
Store
Missionaries
New missionaries and Sister and President Peterson
Outside of store
Us in front
Chagrin River where Willard Richards was baptized on December 31, 1834
Kirtland Temple

What a GREAT day!!! We arrived at Kirtland about an hour early so we went to Mickey-D's for breakfast.

We met President and Sister Peterson, all the new missionaries, Elder and Sister Haight, Elder McGuire, Brother and Sister Carl Anderson, and Elder and Sister Beckstrom at the Kirtland Temple at 8:00 am. We were given a tour by a woman named Barbara from the Community of Christ Church. Brother Anderson (a Kirtland Historian, CES representitive, and has written a book entitled "Joseph's Kirtland") who has lived in Kirtland for 40 years, also filled in the Church's information and what took place in all of the places in Church History. What a special person. He made it all come alive in your mind.He read accounts form the Doctrine & Covenants and told us events that occurred in each room. To know the keys of the restoraton were given along with the, visit from Moses, Elijah and Elias to restore the keys that they held. Kirtland was the one place that the Prophet Joseph lived the longest.

Then we went to the Newell K Whitney Store and toured it and went upstairs to the revelation room where many revelations were written and the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible took place. Then we went into the School of the Prophets( a tiny room) and there were told of some of the things that took place there. It, other than our temples now, is where the Savior appeared. He gave

Joseph the Word of Wisdom Revelation. (20 of 22 men smoked or chewed and after Emma's complaint of having to clean up after each meeting Joseph prayed and was given the revelation for the Word of Wosdom. Then went in the adjoining room and wrote it down and came back and read it to those present. They immediately threw there pipes and other tabaccos in the fireplace.) This room is not much larger than a medium sized bathroom. So you can imagine the smoke. GAG!!!

We then heard from President Peterson about How Kirtland will be, rather is, one of four places that the Church will grow and be spread in the last days, in great numbers. He then had all of us kneel down and silently say a prayer to Heavenly Father and dedicate ourselves and our missions to Him. What a special feeling we had. We then left and took pictures.

Not any other missionaries get to start their first week in the mission in such a special manner.

Tonight we get two missionaries, who are going home at the end of their missions. They will come about 11:00 pm and then we need to have them at the Presidents home at 4:30 am to go to the airport. Then we will go to the archives and work and then to the Family History Center after we leave there. Then it will be Friday.YEAH!!! Don't know for sure if we will do anything special on Saturday. We have to polish up our talks for Sunday and get things ready for Sunday dinner as we are having 8 others over for dinner. Don't want to do a lot on Sunday except eat.

Well if you need any other explanation of the pictures will call tonight. Love Mom and Dad

Letters from our Mission

We have been here almost a month. Time is going quickly, although one day last week I had one of those bad word days BORED!! It was just doing the same thing over and over and over. So now I am trying to do a variety of things to keep from getting that way again. If I don't it's going to be a l-o-n-g mission. We are so busy every day and night and weekends. Today Dad helped Sister and Elder Hartman move about four apartments of of Elders and Sisters. I went to a Stake RS Enrichment Activity and luncheon with the Senior Sisters. Hey, if you get a minute go online to reddmountianretreat.com and look at that house up at Bear Lake. Sister Redd here said we could us it anytime for a Family Reunion. It has 6 bedrooms and beds for 20. She needs dad to build her some cabinets. See what you think and we will get it after we get back and ALL of us can go up and stay.

Dad has been doing some training on the camera here. It is a little bit different than the one at the MTC as it is faster and higher powered.We will start filming in April. We will be doing shift work so we will be going in a little later and staying until about 6 pm each day Monday-Friday. They are so far behind on imaging that we need to help in order to get caught up. There are 88 boxes "preped" with about 5,000 images in each one and there are 154 more boxes to do. So we have a lot ahead of us to do.

President Peterson gave all the missionaries a copy of the Book of Mormon for Christmas and a challenge to read it in two months. We weren't here but they gave us each one and we are going to start the challenge tomorrow, March 1st.

Here it is:

We invite you to join with us and read the Book of Mormon with the following objective, to find Jesus Christ within its pages. Each day, for the next 60 days, beginning March 1, 2009, do the following:

1. Write your name one the inside cover, for this Book of Mormon will be highly prized.

2. Read faithfully each day the chapters from the reading chart.

3. Circle each reference to Jesus by whatever name He is called ie.(Jesus, Lord, Emanuel, Lamb of God, He, Him, I etc.) At the bottom of each page, write the number of times Jesus is mentioned.

4. Highlight in one color all the Savior's words when he speaks or when He is directly quoted, such as when a prophet says, "Thus saith the Lord"

5. Highlight in a second color all the teachings and doctrines referring directly to Christ's mission, ressurection, birth, crucifixion, etc.

May you develop an even greater appreciation and love our Savior Jesus Christ. May you have and increased love for the Book of Mormon, and may you have a greater ability to testify of Him because you know Him.

Then he gave them a reading chart. If you guys would like to do this and want the list I am sending it as an attachment. Maybe we can actually get through all the way.

We sure miss all of you. Hope some of you get to come out. But if not we understand. Keep us up on your doings so we can sort of feel like we are there.

Sunday, March 1, 2009

Went to church this morning. What a great Fast and Testimony Meeting. The spirit was so strong. Lots testified of doing what is right and being strong in what we know is true. One young girl told of going to her High school basketball teams overnighter on Saturday and when pizza and etc were served she told them No as she was fasting. They wanted to know what that meant and she explained to them how we fast for 24 hours for something special or someone and then give the cost of the meals we skipped to those in need. What a great thing for her to have the courage to tell them and especially to do what she knew and had been taught, was right. It is hard these days to do something different form the rest of the kids, but that's why we need to choose good friends and to be a good friend back in return. Sometime you may need that special friend to help pull you away from wrong things or maybe you will be the one to help your friends. I am so glad our grandchildren and kids have good friends and will always remember "Would Jesus want me to do this?".

No matter where you go the Church is always the same. Trying to learn everyone's names. Each week we meet a few more. Guess what?...............we GET to talk in Church next Sunday. Our subject is to tell a little about ourselves and on ways to keep the Sabbath holy. So that shouldn't be to bad. Don't know if it's scarier to talk to people you know or don't know.

Have a busy week ahead. Of coarse the archives most every day. A little break this week as on Wednesday morning at 6:15 am we leave and go to Kirtland. We will meet with all the new missionaries and President and Sister Peterson at the Kirtland temple for a tour and then go down to the visitors center at Historic Kirtland to the Newell K Whitney Store and the School of the Prophets. There President Peterson will tell us about the history of Kirtland in Church History and what revelations were given to Joseph Smith and the 12 there. Then he will dedicate our missions for us. Ought to be an awesome day. Wednesday night about 10:00 pm we will get two elders that are going home, to stay at our apartment. Then at 4:00 am we take them to the Presidents home to leave for the airport.Thursday evening we work at the Family History Center and Friday evening we are going out to a Polish restaurant with all the Senior Couples and Senior Sisters from here and Kirtland. Then Saturday I think is the day we are going to the Amish town of Berlin (pronounced Berlun) to see the "Master Carver" and the shops, Leahmans Hardware Store and the Knife store (that has really awesome kitchen knives. Expensive though). A paring knife is $60.00. Probably won't buy just look.

Well best end for the day as the Senior sisters and sister Olson (who has been staying with us for a little over a week) will be home from church and I invited them for dinner.

Love ALL of you!!!

Mom and Dad

Kirtland

The Savior on display in Kirtland.

Preparing the documents

The Documents we are opening to prep for filming. We put them in these boxes that have water in the bottom so that the moisture can help that papers from being so brittle.

Happy Valentines Day!

Mom is still able to entertain and serve her yummy food on the mission. They sure are all lucky

Fasteners

Different fasteners that we find on the documents from 1900's